Ingredients
1 oven-ready chicken,weighing about 1.8 kg / 4 lb, cut into 8 portions
1 large garlic clove,crushed
3 tbsp sunflower oil
1 medium onion, finely chopped
4 tbsp tomato purée
2 tsp chopped fresh thyme
2 bay leaves
850 ml / 1½ pints chicken stock
375 g box American long-grain rice
2 plantains, to serve
Tomato sauce
1 medium onion,roughly chopped
3 large garlic cloves
400 g can plum tomatoes
1 red pepper, seeded and roughly chopped
½ – 1 tsp hot chilli powder, to taste
If you’ve got some fresh red chillies, use them instead of – or as well as -chilli powder. There are no hard and fast rules.
Season the chicken, rub in the garlic and set aside (You can leave it overnight in the fridge)
For the sauce, put the onion, garlic, tomatoes, red pepper and chilli powder into a food processor. Blend for about a minute until smooth.
Heat the oil in a heavy-based flame proof casserole, large enough to take all the chicken in one layer. Fry for 5 – 7 minutes until browned all over, then remove and set aside. Drain off the fat, leaving a little behind.
Add the onion and fry for3 – 4 minutes until soft, then stir in half the tomato sauce and cook for 8 – 10 minutes. Add half the tomato purée and thyme, 1 bay leaf, a pinch of salt and 300 ml / 1/2 pint stock. Bring to the boil, lower the heat, return the chicken to the pan and simmer uncovered for 40 minutes, turning the chicken halfway.(You can make up to this stage the day before. Leave to cool,then keep the covered pan in the fridge. It can also be frozen.)
While the chicken cooks,bring the remaining sauce to the boil in a pan, then simmer for 8- 10 minutes.
Tip the rice into the sauce and add the remaining tomato purée, thyme, bay leaf and stock. Season, stir well and bring to the boil, then turn the heat right down and put the lid on. Cook for 15 – 20 minutes until the liquid is absorbed. Serve with the fried plantains on the side.
Serves 4.
Country : Nigeria
Course: Poultry dish